Boss's Right-Hand Lover

Chapter Twelve

I looked around my surroundings. The spotlights shined on me like a light from a lighthouse, the crowd roared like lions and I stood at the center of the ring waiting for my opponent. I turned my eyes to the audience. I noticed Xander and Ralph in the front row along with a middle-aged yet expensive-looking man and a young girl next to him, old enough to be his daughter. Xander stared at me the minute he and Ralph were done conversing. Ralph gave me a thumbs-up with an encouraging smile.

"Well, well, well. Who do we have here?" The crowd went silent as who I assumed to be Jake, entered the ring. I stared at him studying his appearance.

Beating this meathead will be easy. I kept my expression cold.

"A girl? Really?" He laughed.

"What are you doing here princess? The castle was too boring for ya?" I clicked my tongue, already hating this guy's presence. Jake turned to Xander.

"Boss, this is who I'm fighting? You couldn't get me a stronger opponent for my position? Come on, I at least deserve that," He said to Xander, who stared at him with a casual look, saying nothing. Jake turned to me.

"Beating you will be a breeze," He smirked at me. I sighed dramatically.

"What a big fat idiot," I said loudly, his face falling.

"What?" I smiled at him.

"Don't mind me. I tend to say my thoughts out loud once in a while. You must be Jake. I'm Eva, nice to meet you," I introduced myself, giving a short bow.

"Sorry I'm not the competitor you imagined, but I'll be taking your job anyway sweetheart," the entire crowd booed, except Ralph who was laughing, and Xander who looked at me with a smirk. Jake looked at me, pissed off by my statement.

Just then, Ralph climbed into the ring and handed us each a dagger. I looked at him, confused. He whispered in my ear.

"It's part of the rules. You have to fight him to an extent, he won't be able to get up until time runs out. And also, don't kill him," I nodded. He left. The bell rang.

"You know, I'm gonna have a lot of fun beating the heck out of you," Jake said getting into position. I smiled at him and threw my dagger at him with full force. He dodged it not expecting it, and I used the opportunity to run towards him and kick him in the stomach. He landed on the floor, making the crowd go wild.

He got up and looked at me dumbfounded, before he lunged for me, his face filled with fury. I waited for him to reach me before I got behind him and kicked him on his left side, then on his right, making him fall face flat on the floor. Jake roared in anger and got up. He threw his dagger at me. I dodged it, not noticing when he pulled out a smile knife and stabbed me in the stomach. I coughed out blood, after he punched me in the face, making me fall sideways to the floor with a thud.

"Eva!!" Ralph yelled from the crowd.

"Hey! Jake brought out an extra weapon, that's against the rules," Someone from the audience said. The crowd was enveloped with mumbles and whispers, and before I knew it, everyone was booing at Jake. I pulled out the knife and coughed out blood. Jake grabbed me by the neck and lifted me.

"This is why girls don't join the Mafia," I spat on his face. He gave me a harsh slap and threw me to the floor.

"Especially not an overconfident weak one," He kicked my sides several times. I coughed out more blood. From the corner of my eyes, I could see Ralph trying to climb into the ring, but the guards held him down. I felt dizzy and could hear Ralph's voice from a distance. I looked at him, to see his face filled with worry, then at Xander, who's eyes itched with concern.

I'm sorry Xander. I failed. I noticed him saying something to me.

Get....up. My eyes widened and I looked at Jake. He was walking towards me. I pushed the dizziness aside and removed the bleeding wound on my stomach from my mind. I slowly got up, trembling in anger and determination instead of uneasiness.

Eva Albert is not a failure. I ran towards Jake. He tried to punch me once more, but I dodged it and used the dagger he stabbed me with to stab him hard on his leg. He grunted in pain and tried pulling it out, but I stopped him by punching him hard in the face. I kept punching him until I noticed his lip bleeding and his left eye swollen. He staggered.

I spun around and kicked him hard in the face, and he fell to the floor with a thud. I stood above him, waiting for him to get up, but he stayed still until the time was up. The crowd cheered loudly and some guys climbed into the ring and lifted me in the air, cheering. Ralph ran to me and hugged me.

"Eva you did it. You had me scared for a second," I smiled at him. I felt dizzy once more. The boys put me down and I stumbled a bit landing in Xander's arms.

"Congratulations. Welcome to the mafia," He said with a proud smile.

"Thank you-," The dizziness got worse and I passed out.